A Stranger in the Night
by josabbimommy
Summary: Bella beat feet 10 years ago. She comes back to bury her father, the local hero, with a mystery child in tow. AU/AH/OOC.-On Hiatus
1. Chapter 1

"**A Stranger in the Night"**

**O/S Poll: Option 3**

**Rated: M**

**Synopsis: Bella Swan left her small hometown of Forks, Washington, 10 years ago in the middle of the night without any warning. Ten years later, she returns to bury her father, the police chief and local town hero. But is he really a hero? And why did she leave? And what is Edward going to say when he finds out she's back?**

Edward POV

"Do you think she's gonna show?" Emmett asked.

"I don't know," I replied.

"I can't imagine her not coming," Emmett replied. He was always the optimist. I knew better.

"I'll bet you a twenty she doens't show," I said, opening my billfold and pulling out a twenty dollar bill.

"You really think that she wouldn't come to her fathers funeral?"

"She hasn't been back since graduation, Em. I don't even think Renee and Charlie know where she is."

"Her father died, Edward. I think she'll be here."

"They don't know where she is. How would they notify her of the death?" I had him there. There was no way for her to find out that he had died, and unless she kept up with the news from our small town, I didn't see her coming.

"We'll see," is all Emmett said. "I gotta head back. I have a lot to do." I watched as Emmett pulled his coat off the back of his chair and put his arm through each sleeve. He had a hard position to fill. He was currently the 'acting' police chief of Forks, ever since Charlie was killed in the line of duty a week ago. We walked out of the diner, a place we had been frequenting since high school, and I watched him unlock his police cruiser and get in the seat.

"You coming for dinner tonight?" He asked after rolling the window down.

"Yeah, as long as Rosie is cooking," I replied.

"Do you think that I would cook when Rosie is in the house?"

"No," I chuckled because I knew that Emmett couldn't cook to save his life. He once tried to make chipped beef using mayonnaise. It didn't turn out well.

Rose and Emmett had been married for seven years and I'd been enjoying dinner with them at least once a week since I'd moved back to town two years ago.

"I'll see you tonight," I waved to him as I bleeped my Volvo open. I was back to my office, and seeing patients within the hour. The thought of my high school love, Isabella Swan, coming back to bury her father didn't enter my thoughts again.

*******************************xyz**********************************************

Bella POV 

"Fuck," I swore under my breath as I saw the blue lights in my rearview mirror. This was the last thing I needed. I pulled over to the side of the road and pushed my window button. The window rolled itself down and I reached over to the passengers seat and grabbed my purse. I dug through my purse until I found my drivers license and registration and waited patiently for the cop to come to the window. I knew what he was doing. He was running the plates of the car. Not that it would help, it was a rental. There was no way I could drive my own car here. It had enough miles on it, I didn't want to put three thousand more on it while traveling up the coast.

"License and registration," the cop said, shining a brigh light in my eye. I hated it when they did that. I knew the reason, to check my pupils and see if I had been drinking, but I still hated it. I handed the two cards to the cop and waited for the interrogation.

"Ma'am," I cringed. I was only 28 years old, I hated being called ma'am, it made me feel old. "Do you know how fast you were going?" I saw that coming. Of course I knew how fast I was going, I had a spedometer. But I didn't dare say that.

"No," I replied, "forty-five?" I had really been going seventy. I shouldn't have been speeding. I knew I had no pull in this town anymore, and I hadn't for a long time.

"Seventy, ma'am." Is all the stone face cop said. He looked young. He was tan skinned and I thought he was from the local Indian reservation.

"That fast?" I giggled a little, hoping, he didn't notice.

"Momma," I saw my little girl move in the backseat and realized that stupid cop had probably woken my sleeping child up. "Why'd we stop?"

"Mommy was going too fast sugar. Go back to sleep. We'll be there soon." She pulled the snugglie up to her chin and readjusted her unicorn pillow pet and closed her eyes. I hoped she slept the rest of the way.

"Your last name is Swan?" the cop, who I now noticied had a name badge that said "Black" on his uniform.

"Yup," I replied. I was bored. I was tired and I just wanted to get to the hotel and go the hell to sleep.

"Any relation to Chief Swan?"

"Yup," I replied again.

"How?"

"How, what?" I asked. His line of questioning was confusing.

"How are you related to the Chief?" He reiterated.

"I'm his daughter, Isabella." This kid had to be new to town. Everyone else would've know who the hell I was.

"The Chief has, er had, a daugther?"

"Yup," I say again.

"Why haven't I ever met you?" He asked.

"I"ve been out of town for the past ten years," I replied. This guy was irking my nerves, "you gonna give me a ticket so I can get going, or what?"

"Slow down," he said, passing my ID and registration back to me. "Drive safe. And wear your seat belt."

*************************************xyz*****************************************

Emmett POV

"Did you know the Chief had a daughter?" Jacob asked me that morning as I walked into the office.

"Yeah, I went to high school with her," I replied. "Why you ask?" I pulled my coat off and placed it over the back of my chair. I grabbed the coffee carafe off my desk and filled it with water, then poured it into the coffee maker. I put my cup under the drip and as soon as it was full I switched my cup out for the carafe. I put the cup to my lips. I needed this. I had been up a large portion of the night walking my newborn back and forth across the floor. Rosie had just been too tired to deal with him.

"I met her last night," as Jacob said this, I blew coffee out of my nose. It hurt. The scalding liquid burnt the hairs of my nose and I choked a little.

"Excuse me?" I said, putting my cup down. No way did I want a repeat of coffee going through my nose again.

"I pulled her over, she was speeding," he handed me a handful of paperwork and started to walk out.

"Jacob, wait," he turned around and headed back towards me.

"Yeah, chief," he answered.

"What do you mean you pulled Isabella Swan over for speeding? She's here, she's in Forks?" I couldn't believe it. The prodigal daughter had returned.

"I don't know if she's still here, but yeah, I pulled her over, last night. She was going seventy in a forty-five."

"You give her a ticket?" he thought about the question for a second. I already knew the answer.

"No, I felt bad for her. With what happened and everything."

"Uh huh," I put my coffee cup to my lips and took a long drink. "How'd she look?"

"Um, good, I guess. I have nothing to compare her to. She's a very pretty lady. Her daughter was cute too."

"Daughter?"

"Yeah, I think I woke her up when I shined the light in her eyes."

"How olds the kid?" I asked.

"I don't know. Seven or eight. I'm bad with kids ages."

"That'll be all, Jake. Have a good night. I'll see you tomorrow."

Jake walked out door and I thought about what I had learned. Isabella Swan was back in town. She somehow found out her father had died. And she had a kid. I knew I should call Edward and let him know. But I wasn't sure how I'd tell him. He was heartbroken after Bella had left and I'm not sure I could see him go through that again, whether she was only in town for a day or two or the next year. He would not handle that well.

And she had a kid. A big kid. He wouldn't handle that well either.

He did owe me twenty bucks though.

Nah, I still can't tell him.


	2. I Hate This Town

**A/N: I don't own Twilight. **

**Special thanks to my Beta, Lila (aka fuzzyltlwingedthing)**

**So here we are, Chapter Two. Some questions answered, more questions put forth. **

**As I said previously, this is not going to be one of those happy go lucky stories. **

**It's going to be dark, and deal with very real, very mature themes. You will be warned before any chapters that deal with mature subject matter. Please do not read this story if you are not of legal age to buy cigarettes in the United States (18 if you don't know). You have been warned. Don't make me put you in the corner and stick your nose to sticky tack. I totally will, I learned it from the evil nuns at Catholic School. **

**This is the same chapter that was previously posted, with the edits done correctly. I posted the chapter incorrectly, and thankfully, someone from TLC was nice enough to let me know. I hope it didn't confuse anyone. **

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"Dammit," I yelled, after stubbing my toe on the foot of the hotel's bed. I sat down on the squeaky mattress and looked at my foot. I'd live, but it was going to smart for a little bit.

"Momma," I heard my daughter say from her side of the bed. I was hoping that she would sleep a little longer, as it wasn't even eight o'clock and we had been out late last night.

"Go back to sleep sugar," I turned to look at my daughter so that she could read my lips. She had only had her cochlear implant for a year and was still getting used to hearing.

"I'm hungry," she said, grabbing her glasses off the nightstand and sliding them onto her little button nose.

"Get dressed, we'll go to the diner and get something to eat." I slid off the mattress once again and walked over to the suitcase I had packed for the two of us. I pulled out some jeans and a t-shirt for me and a summer dress for her. She liked to wear dresses, and most days, it was all you found her in.

After slipping on my clothes and throwing my hair into a ponytail, I looked at my daughter. She was dressed and ready to go, and looked so much like me that sometimes it was scary. You could definitely see the family resemblance.

"Caitlin, grab your sweater. Sometimes it's gets cold here in the afternoon." She walked over to me, grabbing her sweater from the chair she'd thrown it on last night.

"Can I have pancakes?" She asked, pushing her arms through the openings in her sweater.

"Yes, baby." I grab her hand and we walk down the hallway of the small hotel, exiting into the bright morning sun and heading across the street to the diner.

God I hated this town.

It was so damn small and everyone freakishly knew each other. I had never liked living here, and I definitely didn't like being back.

But I had to be here, to make sure he was really dead.

"Table for two?" the waitress asked as we walked up to the diner check in podium.

"Yeah," I replied, pushing my daughter behind me, I didn't want anyone to recognize us just yet.

A few minutes after seating us, the waitress came back and looked at me before speaking.

"What can I getcha?" she asked, still staring at me.

"Eggs, bacon and hash browns, and the largest cup of coffee you can give me." The women kept on staring at me while writing down my order, and at this point, I was sure that she had recognized me.

"And for you honey," she looked towards my daughter and stared at the side of her head. I'm sure she was looking at her cochlear implant. It didn't bother me, and it didn't bother my daughter, but some people didn't realize that staring was rude.

"Pancakes!" she said excitedly, "and OJ, thank you." The waitress walked away from the table and headed to the kitchen. She brought our drinks out pretty quickly and stared at me once again, but again, didn't speak.

I heard the bell on the door ding behind us but I didn't bother to turn around.

"I'd like the hungryman breakfast," I heard a deep, vaguely familiar voice say.

"That for here, Chief?" I was pretty sure that was our waitress talking.

"To go," the deep voice said. Heavy footprints walked beside our table and walked past, I tried to hide behind my iPad, but I was unsuccessful.

"Bells?" Oh my god, it was Emmett McCarty, I would recognize that giant body anywhere.

"Emmett," I said, putting my iPad down and looking up at his hulking figure.

"Who's this?" I heard him say, nodding towards my daughter.

"I'm Caitlin," my daughter volunteered. "Who are you?"

"Emmett McCarty, acting police chief of Forks," he put his hand out to my daughter, to shake. What an idiot. My daughter being the smart child that she was, grabbed his hand and shook it daintily.

"You look like your mom," I heard Emmett say.

"I know. Everyone says that," Caitlin replied to him. "Are you having breakfast too?" my daughter asked.

"Yup," Emmett replied, "the hungryman, 'cause I'm a hungry man." He chuckled to himself. Emmett always thought he was a comedian.

I saw the corners of Caitlin's mouth curl up and before I could stop him, Caitlin had invited him to sit and have breakfast with us.

This day could not get any worse.

I sat there and read the New York Times on my iPad as Emmett and Caitlin got to know each other. I wasn't even paying attention when the bell at the door dinged again.

"Edward," I heard Emmett whisper.

Fuckin' A, I thought to myself. Just the man I didn't want to see.

My day had just gotten worse.

"Em," I heard the velvety silk voice say. It hadn't changed in the ten years since I'd been gone. "Who's this cute little girl?" He hadn't recognized me yet, and he couldn't see my face from where he was standing. I tried to shield my face once again with my iPad.

"This is Caitlin," Emmett said. 'Please don't say my name, please don't say my name.' I chanted to myself. "Bella's daughter."

Fuckin' A. And there it was. Now I was going to have to deal with him. The second to last person that I wanted to see in this godforsaken town.

Next to my mother.

I definitely didn't want to see her.

"Bella," I heard Edward whisper.

I turned to look at him, pushing my bangs out of my face and putting my iPad on the table next to me.

"Edward," I said. I put my sweaty palms against my legs and wiped them off on my jeans.

"You're back," he said, looking from me to Caitlin, and then back to me. "You have a daughter."

"Yes, I do." I said. I grabbed my coffee cup and took a large gulp. I burnt the shit out of my trachea and almost choked, but every second that I didn't have to talk to him was worth the pain.

"Married?" He asked, not really a question, but a statement.

"No," I replied.

"Engaged?" Again the implication that he was asking a question, without really asking a question.

"Divorced," I replied. I didn't want to go into all the gory details. I didn't need to tell anyone the secrets of Bella Smith. No one needed to know, most especially the man I used to love.

"I'm sorry," he said. It was always the response I got.

"You?" I asked, using his method of question asking. Two could play this game.

"Single," he replied. That surprised me. Edward had always seemed like the kind to settle down and have a handful of children.

"That's surprising," I replied.

"It shouldn't be," he said, turning and walking away. I wasn't sure what he meant by that. "If you'll excuse me, I have patients waiting." He turned around and walked out the door, I heared the bell ding as it closed. It didn't appear that he got any food.

"Who was that Momma?" my little girl asked. I had been in my own little world for a minute, not really noticing what was going on around me.

"Someone I used to know," I replied. Caitlin didn't need to know who he was. We wouldn't be staying long enough for her to get to know anyone.

"How long you in town for Bells?" I heard Emmett ask. His plate was empty and he was drinking his juice, speaking between swallows. It was kinda yucky.

"Momma says you shouldn't speak with you mouth full," Caitlin admonished.

"Your momma's right," he replied. He picked a napkin up and wiped his mouth off.

"Just until the funeral, we have to get back," I took another drink from my coffee, this time it was a little cooler, and my trachea suffered no burns.

"Back to?" Emmett asked. I looked over at Caitlin who was happily cutting her syrup covered pancakes.

"Where we live," I replied.

"And that is?" Emmett asked.

"None of your business," I replied. He, nor anyone else in this town, needed to know where I lived.

"Why does it matter if I know where you live?" Emmett asked, I could see his expression start to change and I knew that he was getting mad.

"I'm never coming back Emmett. I just came to make sure he was really dead. And then I'm outta here, and I'm never, ever coming back." I pushed my plate away and stuffed my iPad into my bag. "Come on Caitlin, we need to go." I threw a twenty on the table and grabbed Caitlin's sweater.

"You should see your mom while you're here," I heard him say. "She took his death really hard."

"That's not happening either. " I grabbed Caitlin's hand and headed for the exit.

"At least tell her why you left," I heard him say, rather loudly, and I was glad that the diner wasn't that packed.

"She knows why I left and as far as I'm concerned, they're both dead. They died ten years ago when I left this town. I'm only here to watch them put him in the ground. And then I'm leaving. She can rot in hell with him. They both deserve to be there." And with that I walked out, pulling Caitlin behind me.


	3. Hello Mother

As I said previously, this is not going to be one of those happy go lucky stories.

Special Thanks to my Beta, Lila, aka **fuzzyltlwingedthing**

It's going to be dark, and deal with very real, very mature themes. You will be warned before any chapters that deal with mature subject matter. Please do not read this story if you are not of legal age to buy cigarettes in the United States (18 if you don't know). You have been warned. Don't make me put you in the corner and stick your nose to sticky tack. I totally will, I learned it from the evil nuns in Catholic School.  
>-<p>

"Call me," I texted into my phone to my ex-husband, James.

I walked with my daughter back to our hotel room, holding her hand tightly as we crossed the street.

"Hey," I said, answering my phone, "I'm heading home."

"What happened, Bella?" He asked me.

"I just—I can't be here. I thought that I could do this, but I can't. We're coming home. I'm going back to the hotel and packing and heading out."

"Do you think that's a good idea?" He asked. James and I had a very unique relationship. We were best friends, but couldn't stay married. James realized that he liked men—in the biblical sense—and he didn't want to cheat on me. I was upset, at first, but I realized that we were a much happier 'couple' divorced than we had ever been married. We still shared a condo. Caitlin and I lived in the bottom, and James and his partner, Seth, lived up above. We were all one big screwed up family, but it worked for us.

"No. But I don't think that it's a good idea to stay either."

"Did you see _her_?" He emphasized the last part and I knew who he meant.

"No," I replied. I wouldn't be this calm if I had run into Renee, the living part of my DNA makeup.

"Who?" He asked.

"Edward," I replied. "He, uh, we, um were in the um, diner, and well, he came in, and well, he uh, he's pissed. Still. After ten years."

"What did you expect, hun? Him to give you a big hug and tell you he missed ya'?"

"No, I was hoping that he wasn't here at all. That he had left Forks, and never came back, like me."

We got into the elevator and rode it up to the room. I unlocked our door and started to pack what little items were sitting around the room.

"You can't leave Bella. You know that. Your therapist—"

"Fuck him," I whispered, James knew why I needed to be here.

"This isn't about you. It's about Caitlin. And closure. And moving on. Healing. Being a great mother. It's not about him, or Renee, or Edward. It's all about her. Remember? It's all about doing what's best for our daughter. And you getting over this, that's what's important."

"I hate it when you're right," I said. I moved my hand away from the zipper of the suitcase and put it back next to the bed. I wasn't going anywhere. At least not today.

"What are your plans for today?"

"I'm going to call the funeral home and see if I can view the body."

"And what are you going to do with Caitlin?"

"I'll have her wait in the parlor of the funeral home. She has her DS, it'll only take a minute."

"And how will you know Renee won't be there?"

"I'm going to ask," I replied. It seemed like a simple enough plan to me. Go in, see the asshole, get out.

I hoped that it worked that way.

"Good luck Bella. Remember, Seth and I love you. We miss our girls. The sooner you get past this, the quicker I can have my family back. Call me after you get back from the funeral home, and let me know how it goes."

"I will. We miss you guys too. We'll be home before you know it."

An hour later after calling the funeral home and confirming that visitation was today for family only, I grabbed my purse and my daughter's hand and we headed to the car to go to the local funeral parlor, only a few minutes down the road. I pulled into the parking lot and looked around. The lot appeared to be empty. I wiped my sweaty palms on my jeans and grabbed my bag.

"Caitlin," I said, turning towards her.

"Momma," she replied.

"I'm going to go in. Do you want to come with me, and wait in the parlor, or sit in the car with the AC going?"

"Can I play with your iPad if I sit out here?"

"Sure," I replied. "I won't be in there for long."

"Will we get to go home after that?" she asked. I knew she wasn't enjoying this trip. It wasn't a fun trip for a little girl to make.

"Yes," I replied.

I left the rental car running and turned towards the funeral parlor. I took a deep breath and started to walk forward. 'You can do this, Bella. You can do this' I chanted to myself.

I walked up the short staircase and pulled the door open. It was heavy and I had to make quite an effort to open it.

"Miss Smith?" Someone asked me as I walked through the white door into what resembled a parlor.

"That's me," I replied, closing the door behind me.

"I'm sorry, I tried to call you back, there's a small problem—"

"What?" I asked. "You said I could see my father. I'm here."

"According to his wife, he doesn't have a daughter," the little, shriveled man standing in front of me practically croaked the words out. I wondered just how old he was, and how long he'd been running this place.

"Excuse me?" I asked, stunned that he would even call her.

"I called Mrs. Swan. She says she doesn't have any children. That they never had children."

"You have got to be kidding me," I sat down on the closest chair, amazed at the turn of events. "You don't understand—I um, I need to see him—after everything—she's not even going to let me see my own damn father, "I was going to cry. I could feel the tears coming to the corners of my eyes. I needed to do this. I needed to see him

"Call her again. I want her to tell me to my face that she doesn't have a daughter," I looked up at the leather faced man briefly, and then concentrated on the concentric circle pattern on the carpeted floor.

"Certainly, ma'am." The old man shuffled away, presumably to get to the telephone and I knew that this was my chance. I quickly got up and walked into another room, a larger room, obviously designed for larger viewings. I saw a casket sitting at the front of the room and quickly walked up to it.

And there he was.

In his dress uniform. His hair and moustache looked perfect. His badge was shiny. His shirt was perfectly ironed and pleated, just as it should be. He looked like he was sleeping.

My father the heralded town hero, who was off duty, minding his own business, when someone tried to rob the local gas station. My father stopped the robbery, and took out the robber. But not before being shot seven times.

He was a hero.

He was my father.

He was the Chief of Police.

He was the reason I was back.

It had taken me ten years to come back here, and face him.

Face the man who had stolen one of the most important things I had to give. My inner ramblings were interrupted by a faint voice, so faint, I almost didn't hear it.

"Isabella? Is that you?"

I turned around to see a woman who looked like a much older version of me, standing behind me, her sweater pulled tightly across her chest.

My mother looked much older than her 50 years. I could tell that the past years had been hard on her. Her face was wrinkled, her hair was gray, she was skinny as a rail.

"Renee," I said, grabbing my bag from off the floor. I hadn't even realized I had dropped it.

"You're back," I heard her say, this time a little louder.

"I'm not staying," I reply, "I just came to see him. And watch him get put in the ground."

"Figures," I heard her mumble, she turned around and started to walk out of the room.

"What did you say?" I had heard her. I just wanted to know what my mother meant by that.

"I said, "it figures"," my mother repeated.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"You always leave when bad things happen," she replied. "That's why you've never been back."

"Bad things, Renee? Is that what you think it was? Just some random bad thing that happened? Really Renee? REALLY?" I was yelling and I was about two feet from my mother's face. I hadn't realized that I was so close.

"Ma'am," the shriveled-up funeral director interrupted, "I need to ask you to—"

"Oh go to hell. I'm leaving. You don't have to worry about me being loud." I stomped out of the funeral parlor and headed to my rental car. I grabbed my keys out of my pocket and bleeped my car open. I opened the car door and looked in the back, confirming that my daughter was still there, absorbed in her Smurf game on my iPad.

"Bella, wait—" I heard my mother yelling at me. I ignored her. I wasn't in the mood to deal with her or her illusions.

I hopped in the seat and snapped my seat belt into place. I turned around to make sure I wasn't going to run anyone over when I saw my mother peering at my daughter through the window.

"Oh my God," I heard her say through the cracked window. "Oh my God," I pulled my car out of the space, careful to not hit her, and headed to the hotel. It wasn't until I was almost to the hotel parking lot that I saw the cop in my rearview and then watched as he switched his lights on.

"Fuckin' A," I muttered under my breath. Two times in less than 24 hours, this is a new record for me, being pulled over twice.

I pushed the down button on my electronic window and waited, again, for one of Forks finest to greet me.

"Bella," I heard the cop say. The same deep voice who had spoken my name just a short time ago.

"Emmett," I replied.

"I got a call that there was a disturbance at Ol' Mr. Webber's funeral parlor, and by the time I got there, the disturbee was gone. You wanna tell me what happened?"

"Nope," I said, popping the p.

"You can't yell at people at a funeral Bella."

"Why?" I asked, "Is it against some law?"

"No," Emmett replied, "It's just rude."

"Uh huh," I mumbled. "Are we done here, Emmett? Or are you going to write me a ticket for something?"

"We're done here," I heard Emmett say, "but Bella, try to stay out of trouble while you're here. I wouldn't want to take the dead police chief's only child to jail."

"And I wouldn't want to be there," I watched as Emmett turned around and walked back to his cruiser and I pushed the button for my window to roll back up. My daughter was just staring at me.

"Did you see Grandpa?" I heard Caitlin ask from the back of the car.

"That man is not your grandfather," I replied.

"Did you see him?" she asked again.

"Yes," I replied.

"Can we go home now?" she asked.

"In a few more days baby," I replied.

"Can Daddy come out here? I think you need Daddy, Mommy."

"I'll call him sugar, maybe he can." I knew that I had scared my daughter and that was not my intention. Sometimes my temper got the best of me.

"Mommy," I heard my little girl speak again.

"Yes, baby?"

"I know this is hard. And I love you," my nine year old was so insightful for a little girl .

Let me know what you think.

I heart reviews.

See ya soon!


	4. Let the Truth be Told

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. That honor belongs to Stephenie Meyer. I have survived an earthquake and a hurricane in the last week so maybe I should go play the lotto.**

**I hope that you enjoy this chapter. I'm hoping to update a little quicker now that all the drama (I hope) is over. **

**THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS ADULT THEMES THAT ARE NOT SUITABLE FOR PEOPLE UNDER THE AGE OF 18. IF YOU ARE NOT OF AGE AND ARE READING THIS CHAPTER, PLEASE STOP. DON'T MAKE ME PUT YOUR NOSE IN THE CORNER. **

**A Stranger in the Night**

**Chapter 4: Let the Truth be Told **

**Beta'd by fuzzyltlwingedthing**

"We're having pizza for dinner?" Caitlin asked after I closed the hotel door to the pizza delivery man.

"Yes, baby." I replied. We rarely had pizza back home. Seth was an unemployed chef and often cooked for us. We were all spoiled by his food.

"Cool," she replied taking a slice and putting it on the paper plates the pizza place had provided.

"Daddy will be here tomorrow," I said, taking two pieces myself and pouring us both drinks.

"He's coming?" I heard her squeal.

"Yes," I replied, taking a bite of my pizza.

"Is Seth coming too?" she asked.

"Yup," I replied.

"Cool," she said.

We sat there for a few minutes, eating in silence.

"Mommy," I heard her ask.

"Yes, baby?" I replied.

"Can we go get ice cream?" she asked.

"Sure, we'll have to walk across the street to the diner," I replied, picking up the pizza plates and throwing them away. "Grab your coat; it may be a little chilly."

A few minutes later we were headed across the street to the diner. Caitlin had recently outgrown holding my hand, and now just walked next to me, chattering about everything.

"Umpf," I heard her say and looked down to find her on the ground, sitting square on her foot.

_That can't be good_, I thought to myself. "What happened?" I asked.

"I missed the curb and tripped," she was still sitting on the floor crying quietly. I had a bad feeling that her foot or ankle were badly injured. Injuries were nothing new to her.

"Put your arms around me," I said. "Can you put any weight on it?"

I helped her stand and watched as she attempted to weight bear.

"Owwww," she wailed. I would have to carry her back to the hotel and take her to the hospital to get looked at.

"Bella!" I instantly recognized Emmett's loud voice. "Everything ok?"

"Yeah. My daughter fell. I'm just going to pick her up and take her to the hospital." Before I knew it, he was out of the car and by my side.

"Here darling, put your arms around my neck." I watched as my daughter wound her arms around his neck and he picked her up like she weighed nothing. "Let me take you, there's a clinic right down the street."

"That's ok Emmett, I'll just go to Forks General," I replied. He was putting my baby in the back of his police cruiser.

"Bella, Forks General closed five years ago. They have a walk-in clinic a few blocks down."

"Ok," I replied. I knew arguing was fruitless so I got in the back of the cruiser and watched Emmett navigate the streets of Forks. Before long we were parked outside of a white building with an orange sign that read "Forks Community Clinic". It looked like a new building and was well maintained.

"Here sugar, put your arms around my neck again," I watched as Emmett picked my daughter up again and walked towards the clinic. I opened the door so he could carry her in and was greeted by the receptionist.

"Where can I put her?" Emmett asked. The petite, black haired girl waved him to the back and into an exam room and Emmett laid her gently on the exam table.

"You'll need to fill these out ma'am," the young woman said.

"Of course," I replied and took the clipboard from her. "Thanks Emmett," I said, "I think we're good from here."

"How are you going to get back to your hotel?" He asked me. I hadn't thought about that, if Caitlin had a broken or sprained ankle she wouldn't be able to walk.

"Taxi," I replied.

"You're not in the city anymore Bells," he said, just giving me one of those 'duh' looks. "We didn't have a taxi service when you left and we don't have one now."

"Um, I don't know then," I replied, "I have to call her father," I said avoiding the question.

"I'll be in the waiting room," he said and turned around and walked out.

I sat down and started filling out the paperwork, I saw Caitlin reading a book, one she had gotten from the bin on the wall. I texted a short message into my phone telling James what was going on and told him I'd let him know what the doctor said.

"Hello," I heard someone say while she simultaneously knocked on the door.

"Come in," I replied. Again, the petite, dark haired woman came in.

"I'm Alice," she said introducing herself, "I'll be your nurse today."

"I'm Caitlin," my daughter said, "and this is my mommy, Bella."

"Hi Bella," Alice turned to me for a second to acknowledge me and then was back to my daughter.

"What happened?" she asked.

"I fell. My foot missed the curb and I fell and landed on it. I heard a snap."

"Oh my," Alice said. "Can I look at it?" she asked.

"Yes," Caitlin replied, "but be careful 'cause it hurts."

"Yes dear," I heard the nurse say. I watched as she poked around my daughter's foot and a few times Caitlin said it hurt or pulled away.

"We'll have to get an x-ray, but I don't think it's broken. The doctor will be in soon," I handed her the clipboard and she left the room.

"Is it very painful honey?"

"Not as bad as my arm," Caitlin replied. She had broken her arm six months previously at school after falling off the monkey bars.

Caitlin went back to reading the book from the book rack and I looked at the paper that was folded up and sitting next to me.

'Hero Cop will be buried on Friday' the headline read. I skimmed the body of the article. It mainly focused on how they would pay tribute to my father, the hero cop. "If only they knew," I muttered under my breath. I couldn't wait to get out of this town.

"Caitlin?" I heard a familiar voice say, the doctor walked in the room with his white-coated back to me.

"I'm Dr. Cullen," the voice said, "I understand you fell?" And then he turned and realized I was in the room.

And I realized I was staring into the eyes of Edward Cullen.

Fuck. My. Life.

"Bella," I heard him say quietly.

"Edward," I replied, just as quietly.

"She missed the curb and fell, landing on her foot. She heard a snap."

He looked at her foot and ankle, poking and prodding the area.

"Any medical problems Caitlin?" He addressed my little girl instead of me.

"She has OI," I replied.

"OI?" I heard Edward repeat.

"Yes, osteogenesis imperfecta, type I, to be exact."

Edward pulled the ophthalmoscope from the wall and looked into her eyes, "why yes she does," I heard him say. I wasn't sure if he was talking to me or not.

"And you have a cochlear," he said, pointing out the rather obvious cochlear implants seated on either side of my child's head.

"It's part of the OI," I replied.

He ignored me and continued with the assessment.

"Can you put weight on it?" I heard him ask. I already knew the answer to this.

"She can't we already tried," I said.

"How old are you Caitlin?" he asked.

"Nine and a half," I heard her reply.

"Nine and a half?" I heard Edward mutter, and then he looked at me with an evil eye. "I'm going to have my nurse take you down the hall to the x-ray room to see if anything is broken, OK?"

"Can Mommy come with me?" she asked.

"Mommy needs to fill out some more paperwork," I heard him say as he picked up my child, placed her in the wheel chair and Alice pushed her down the hallway. He closed the door behind him.

"Is she mine?" he asked.

"No," I whispered.

"Really?" he asked again, turning to look at me. His eyes were filled with anger.

"Yes, really," I replied again.

"She's nine and a half," he said.

"That she is," I replied.

"You've been gone ten years. Which means you were pregnant when you left."

I just looked at him. Trying to ignore the question.

"Who's her father?" he asked.

"Why does it matter? It's not you."

"How do I know that?" he asked, "You left, in the middle of the night, without any warning or a note. You've been gone ten years, and then you return, with a child in tow. What do you expect me to think?"

"You're not her father," I said again.

"Who is?" he asked again.

"Why is it so important to you Edward?"

"Because I loved you, Bella. And you left. And now you're back, with a mystery child who happens to be almost ten years old. Who the hell else could she belong to, besides me?"

"YOU ARE NOT HER FATHER," I emphasized, "it's not important who is," I replied. I grabbed my purse and pushed past him, heading for the waiting room. "I'll wait for her out here."

"OI is hereditary," he says to me as I head out the door. "I only know one other person in this town who has it, and he recently died. "

"I have it too," I said, I pushed my hand up to my face to wipe the tears I could feel starting.

He doesn't say anything for a few minutes and I turn my head slightly to see him looking at his phone.

"Type One only happens when both parents have it," I hear him say. My head is pounding, and I can feel a migraine coming on. "Bella, did he—I mean, is he?"

I just stood there frozen. I couldn't move. I could us both breathing, my breaths short and choppy, his even and regular.

"Tell me I'm wrong," he said.

Again, I chose the silent route. I didn't want him to know, couldn't have him know.

"Tell me I'm wrong. Please Bella. Tell me this didn't happen right under my nose," I walked a little closer to the door. This is not the conversation that I wanted to have, ever, most especially with Edward. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him come closer, he grabbed my hand and I pulled it away from him. I couldn't have him touch me.

"Just fix my daughter, and don't worry about me. It was a long time ago."

"Does your mother know?" I heard him ask.

"She's the reason I left. Not him, she pushed me away. She knew everything and she just let him do it. She's as much to blame as he is. Maybe even more," and then they came. The river of tears I'd been holding back since I got here started. I wasn't mourning the loss of my father. I was mourning the loss of my innocence.

**A/N: Well it has been an interesting month in the Old Dominion. My middle child started Kindergarten and my oldest went into the Fourth grade! Makes me old thinking that I have a nine year old. Virginia experienced an earthquake that measured 5.9 on the Richter scale, and lucky me lives less than a mile from the epicenter. My son's school was condemned and our high school is condemned as well. Our small town is struggling to rebuild and figure out a plan for our children to get back to school as soon as possible. I have been helping get the debris out of the way, and tagging children's belongings so they can be returned to them. Then we reluctantly welcomed Hurricane Irene and I got to spend a super fun 30+ hours at the rescue squad building running on generator power. Between the trees that fell during the earthquake (and aftershocks that we've gotten every day) and the Hurricane, my front and back yard resemble a war zone.**

**In chapter five, we're going to meet James and Seth and Renee might be making an appearance, although I haven't decided on that yet.**


	5. That's What Friends are For

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight.**

**Thanks to my Beta, Fuzzyltlwingdthing**

I could feel the tears running down my face and then I felt strong arms pull me towards a strong chest and embrace me. I smelled something spicy, cinnamon mixed with something else and I inhaled deeply. It was distinctly Edward, and I knew the scent well. For the first two years after I left Forks, I longed for the smell. Needed it. I had gone to different stores looking for that scent, but could never quite find a replica. Once or twice I thought I had it narrowed down, but when I sprayed it on myself instead of a tester card, it didn't smell like him.

We sat there together; I cried while I was folded in his arms. I had missed him, so much over the years that I was relishing the feeling of being back in his arms. I could feel my skin tingling from his touch, electricity shooting across my arm hairs, making them stand straight up.

"Bells." I heard him whisper, he was rubbing small circles on my back, trying to calm me down. I was clutching him. Wiping my runny nose on his white coat. He guided me over to a chair and helped me sit down. He handed me a handkerchief to wipe my nose and my face. "I'm sorry," he said, sitting down next to me.

"What—" I hiccupped cried, "are you," hiccup, hiccup, "sorry about?" I always hiccupped when I cried.

"I should've seen it. I can't believe that I didn't know," he was still holding me. It felt good to be in his arms, surrounded by masculinity. "How long?" He asked.

"A year," I whispered quietly.

He didn't say anything for a while. I sat there and tried to calm myself down, knowing my child would be back any minute. I wiped at my eyes, knowing they were red and puffy.

"If he wasn't dead, I'd kill him myself," he murmured into my ear. His hot breath played across my neck and it made me shiver; he pulled me closer and placed a chaste kiss on my head. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I was ashamed," I said quietly. "I thought you'd be upset with me," I replied.

"We're back," I heard the nurse, Alice, say as she knocked on the door and then gently pushed my daughter through.

I stood up quickly and pulled myself away from Edward's embrace, I couldn't let Caitlin see us together.

"Momma," she said, looking at me, then to Edward, then back to me. "You miss me?" she asked.

"Of course," I said, walking over to her and putting a kiss on her head.

"I'm going to look at the films," I watched Edward walk out the door.

I sat there quietly while my daughter chatted with Alice about her father coming in the morning. She was excited to see James and Seth. I was too. It would be nice to have him here.

"Well," Edward said, coming back into the room, "I'm afraid it's broken. The good news is we can cast it here," he turned around and opened a cabinet door and started pulling supplies out.

"I have to call her dad," I said. "I'll be back in a minute." I needed some fresh air, if only for a few minutes.

I pulled out my phone and quickly called James.

"Hey Hun," he answered immediately. "How's our girl?"

"She has a broken ankle," I replied.

"Damn," was all he had to say. "Tell her I love her. And I'll see her tomorrow. Do you need me to bring anything? Keep in mind, I can't smuggle a firearm on the plane, no matter how suave I am," I heard him giggle and then I giggled, and then I heard Seth giggle.

"No, I don't need anything. Tell Seth I said hello, and I can't wait to see you tomorrow," I pushed the disconnect button and turned to go back into the exam room.

"She ok?" I heard Emmett ask, I hadn't realized that he was still here.

"Broken Ankle," I replied. "Edward is casting it now."

"Do you think that we could talk for a minute?" Emmett asked. I walked over to the row of chairs that were placed up against the wall and sat down.

"Sure," I replied. Opening up to Edward had made me feel better and I felt a little safer talking to Emmett than I had in the past.

"I never liked your dad," he started. "Sure, I pretended to like him. I wanted to be a police officer and I knew the only way that would happen was if I was nice to him. But I never liked him. He always gave me a bad case of the hebejebes."

I listened as Emmett talked, silently contemplating what Emmett said. I looked around the room, noticing that it was vacant. Alice must still be in with Edward and Caitlin.

"And then, one year at a Christmas party, after I thought he drank too much of the punch, he cornered Rose. My wife is a strong woman, and she's good at defending herself. But before she could push him away he had pawed at her and ripped her shirt. Rose had to convince me not to shoot him. When you came back, with a kid, I suspected something had happened. I never believed what he said about your leaving. The story never made complete sense. But everyone, including myself and Edward, looked past it. We all knew he was an alcoholic and that he occasionally smacked Renee around, but he was a great cop and good at his job. If I knew back then Bella, what I suspect he was doing to you, I would've killed him."

"He wasn't worth going to jail over," I said quietly.

"I wouldn't have gone to jail," he replied. "They never would've found his body."

"When did you figure it out, that she was his?" I asked. Emmett had always been smart; he just never really applied himself in high school.

"After speaking with your mother at the funeral home, she kept on muttering 'she can't be his, she can't be his.' And that's when I figured it out."

"She's my world," I replied. "I hated her at first. Hated being pregnant. And then she was here. And I took one look at her and knew she was all mine. I vowed he'd never meet her. Never see her. Never touch her. I love her more than I love anything else in the world."

"And her dad?" Emmett had put his arm around me and I rested my head on his shoulder. Emmett and I had always been like brother and sister and I realized that I had really missed him. We'd met on the first day of Kindergarten and over the years had bonded. Rose was always ok with our friendship. Rose knew Emmett was in love with her, and that he was my best friend. For a very long time, until I met James.

"He rescued me. He helped me when I needed help the most. He thought he could love me. We were lying to each other and ourselves. He couldn't love women. Not like I needed him to love me."

"He's Gay?"

"Very. I was living in a homeless shelter in NYC. I was pregnant and going to the free clinic. James was the doctor at the clinic. He felt bad for me. He kept harping on me about nutrition and sleep and prenatal vitamins. One day, I told him to fuck off. He took me for lunch and we started to talk, He reminded me of Edward, smart and passionate. He convinced me to leave the homeless shelter and live in his house, in a completely platonic way. We got to know each other and decided to get married. At first, it was a marriage of convenience. He needed a wife, and an heir, and I needed a home and a future. In retrospect, going home with a man twice my age, while pregnant, was probably not the best decision. But something about him made me trust him. He knew at that point in his life that he was gay. But he was in denial. His family was in denial. They wanted him to marry, have children, move to Connecticut. I knew when I married him he was gay. But I was ok with it, he wanted to be a dad and I was in such a bad place that I needed him. We spent our honeymoon eating ice cream, M & M's and watching chick flicks. Caitlin was born a month later. His family was ecstatic. With James help, I was able to go to college, get a teaching degree and find a job. Caitlin was taking care of by an au' pair and we were happy. And then Seth walked into his clinic one day with a burn on his hand. And the rest is history. He fell in love with Seth. He was—is, a fantastic father. He dotes on Caitlin and his boyfriend, Caitlin's 'Uncle' Seth spoils her rotten. We got divorced, I moved downstairs and he and Seth moved upstairs. They're happy. We're happy. Caitlin calls Seth 'Uncle' but understands that James is 'Daddy'. She's very open-minded. She's spoiled by everyone. We have a good thing going."

"He sounds like a good guy," Emmett replied. "I'm glad you had someone to take care of you, be with you during such a hard time in your life."

"He's a great guy. They'll be here tomorrow," I started to chew my cuticle.

"Why didn't they come with you?" he asked.

"I needed to do this myself."

"I've missed you Bells," Emmett looks at me and pulled me closer to him. "I'm sorry I didn't see it. I'm sorry I couldn't stop him. But I'm happy you're back, if only for a few days."

A few minutes later the door opened and Edward came out, pushing Caitlin in a wheelchair.

"Mommy, I have a pink cast!" She looked way too happy about the cast.

"You need help getting her back to the hotel, Bells?" Edward asked, looking at me and Emmett.

"No, Em's going to help." I replied. I moved Emmett's hand from my shoulder and got up to open the door for my daughter.

Emmett got up and pushed Caitlin out to the car. Edward came up behind me and quietly whispered in my ear, "Can I have your number?"

I pulled my silver business card case from my purse, opened it and handed one of the crisp, ivory cards to Edward.

"Teacher, huh?" he said, looking at it.

"Yup. Special Education."

"Where'd you go?" he asked, fingering the card lightly.

"NYU," I replied.

"Really?" He asked, wide eyed and looking at me.

"Yes, really." I replied.

"Me too," he said, "for medical school."

"Really? When were you there?" I asked. The idea that Edward had spent any amount of time in New York while I was there amazed me.

"2005-2009," Edward replied. "I just finished residency at Seattle General last year. Dad helped us open this place; he retired but knew the people of Forks still needed a doctor."

"I did most of my work online," I replied, "so I could spend time with Caitlin. I only went to campus to take tests."

"It's amazing we didn't see each other," he replied, I think he was little surprised that we never ran into each other. I wasn't. I had made a point to avoid making friends on campus. I did what I had to do and left.

I walked out the door and into the cool air of the season. Caitlin was already in the back of the police cruiser, with her leg propped up on the seat.

"Can I call you?" He asked, looking at the card again.

"I won't be in town long," I replied evasively.

"I won't wait long to call," he replied, giving me another chaste kiss on my head, he smiled at me, one side of his mouth crooked up. The smile. I had missed that smile.

I walked around to the other side of the cruiser and opened the door. I blinked and shook my head trying unsuccessfully to break the tension his statement and kiss had made.

"Bella," I heard him say. I closed my eyes and swallowed.

"Yeah," I replied. I was gripping the cruiser door.

"Let's do breakfast," he asked. "Talk some more."

"I can't," I said taking a deep breath.

"Why not?" He asked.

And that's when it hit me. I didn't really have a good reason as to why I couldn't have breakfast. James and Seth were renting a car and driving here from the airport, but Edward didn't know that.

"I have to pick up James," I replied.

"You have to eat before you go," he replied. He was absolutely right. I did have to eat before I left. And what would it hurt? Breakfast never killed anyone right? Right?

"Um, ok," I replied, "I'll meet you at six am in the diner," the crooked smile appeared again and as I climbed into the seat, he waved at me.

Caitlin and I rode in the back of the cruiser in silence. Caitlin was tired from the day's events and I was tired because I didn't sleep well last night.

Emmett let us off with a grin, "See you around?"

I smiled back at him, and then turned and helped Caitlin out of the cruiser. I didn't notice the sleek black Volvo pull up behind us. Emmett hopped out of the cruiser to help me with Caitlin and then I felt it again. The hairs on my arms were standing on edge. I looked up to see Edward standing next to his car, holding a Teddy Bear in his hand.

"She forgot her teddy bear," Edward said, walking quickly over to the car and handing it to me.

"Thanks," I replied, taking it from him.

"You're welcome," he said turning to Emmett. "Here Em, I'll take her." He took my sleeping child into his arms, "lead the way."

**A/N: Ok, so I know that I said James and Seth would be making an appearance in this chapter, but I obviously lied. There was just a little more that I needed to say. We will see them next chapter though.**


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